I Want a Lifetime with You
Chapter 63

"Since he's given you, then why not you accept it?" Fu Chengyan turned and said. "Don't feel burdened!"

"Are you not surprised at all? It's 20%! That's more than what Shi Wei owns!" In reality, Shi Nuan had her own plans. Although she is not on good terms with her family members, the girl had never actually wanted to fall out with them this way. She didn't want to argue any further with Shi Wei. Now that Shi Yunsheng had suddenly given her 20% of the shares, things would not be very smooth for long.

Shi Nuan was a very simple person. She didn't want these shares at all; perhaps her family's treatment of her had long caused her to mellow out.

"The Shi family is going to change drastically now that I've gotten this 20% of shares."

Fu Chengyan merely smiled and casually tapped the steering wheel. "It's not as serious as you think. Your grandfather has his own reasons. Let's put Shi Yu aside, the Shi family only has you and Shi Wei. If the Shi family were to fall into others' hands, your grandfather's legacy would end in your ends. He's giving you the shares as a precaution."

"How do you know that?"

Shi Nuan looked up and turned towards Fu Chengyan in disbelief. These were all Shi family affairs that outsiders would normally be unaware of, yet Fu Chengyan knew. "I'm talking about Shi Yu, and how you know what my grandpa is thinking."

Fu Chengyan merely smiled. "It's not hard to guess! Are you hungry?"

It was now that Shi Nuan realized she hadn't eaten ever since she got off work. She nodded. "Have you eaten?"

"I haven't either," Fu Chengyan said with a faint smile. "Wanna grab a bite somewhere?"

"Yeah!" Shi Nuan thought for a moment. "Are we eating outside?"

"Yeah, it's getting late. It's fine if you wanna prepare something at home." Fu Chengyan didn't mind at all. "It'll probably be late by the time we're done buying groceries and preparing dinner."

"Then let's eat outside. I'm in the mood for some spicy hotpot. Is that OK?" After all, she didn't quite understand Fu Chengyan's taste about food. As for herself, she enjoyed spicy food. "Sure!" Fu Chengyan nodded. "Where do you feel like eating? Tell me about the place."

Shi Nuan suggested a place she used to frequent. Fu Chengyan didn't know how to get there, so Shi Nuan leaned over to key in the GPS location. "It's not far, actually. It's near Jing University. There's a mall behind it, right?"

Fu Chengyan arched his brows and nodded. "Looks like you had a pretty enriching college life!" He knew about that shopping mall; it was one business under Fu family's conglomerate.

Shi Nuan scratched her head in embarrassment. “I used to visit this place often for some food and drinks with my friends. This place isn't far from Jing University, so we would come here regularly. The prices are reasonable too, but I haven't been here much ever since I graduated."

Shi Nuan couldn't conceal her good mood when she spoke about her past, but soon looked slightly dejected. "My two best friends were Song Rongrong and Su Yian. What if I introduce you to them next time?" "Sure!" Fu Chengyan nodded. It was rare for Shi Nuan to be this tactful. "When you're free then!" She had truly accepted him.

Shi Nuan couldn't help but sigh inside. She felt that Fu Chengyan wasn't as how others describe him.

Fu Chengyan drove very steadily, and they arrived at the shopping mall near Jing University in about half an hour. The restaurant Shi Nuan wanted to go to had been operating since this mall was built. Unfortunately, the place was packed, although Shi Nuan had booked a table half an hour earlier. She scratched her head in a slight embarrassment and said, "Hmm... we can always grab something in another place."

"There's no need!" Fu Chengyan merely took Shi Nuan's hand and walked towards the waiting area. Shi Nuan was stunned for a moment. She held a ticket with one hand while another one was being held onto Fu Chengyan.

After taking a seat, Fu Chengyan released Shi Nuan's hand. Shi Nuan looked at the hand where Fu Chengyan had just held. It felt slightly moist.

She blushed while starring at her palm before averting her gaze in embarrassment. She looked directly into Fu Chengyan's brooding eyes. Shi Nuan felt butterflies in her stomach as she subconsciously tightens her grip on the ticket in her hand; the girl's mouth twitched slightly as she exclaimed, "There are so many people!"

"Yeah," Fu Chengyan smiled from ear to ear. "There's no rush."

"Yeah, there's no rush!" Shi Nuan smiled. Fu Chengyan opened her palm to get the ticket and flattened out before gazing at her deeply. His face was full of smiles. "Two more tables!"

Shi Nuan felt embarrassed as she felt Fu Chengyan was doing this on purpose. "Yeah, it'll be our turn soon!" She bit her lip.

After a couple of minutes, it was finally their turn, and Shi Nuan quickly got up. "Let's go. It's our turn!" She subconsciously took Fu Chengyan's hand.

Fu Chengyan's raised his brows as he looked at Shi Nuan holding his hand with a tender smile, and he allowed her to do as she pleased.

Shi Nuan had actually taken his hand without even realizing it, but Fu Chengyan had already clasped her hand when she noticed that, and it was too late for her to let go.

There was a small table which catered to only two people. Their sittings were not spacious, but it was good enough for them.

Shi Nuan tried to go along with Fu Chengyan's palate and handed him the menu. "Run through the menu and tell me what you want to eat. I forgot to ask earlier if you can take spicy food." They had some bland food at home for the past two days, so Shi Nuan was a bit worried.

Hearing that, Fu Chengyan raised his brows and tapped the menu with his slender fingers. "No issues!"

Shi Nuan understood that he could take spicy food, but not too much. She nodded. "Then we'll have some mild spicy one! What do you feel like eating? Fish or...

Fu Chengyan pushed the menu back to Shi Nuan. "You don't have to go along with me. Just order whatever you feel like having!"

Shi Nuan's eyes lit up and formed a smile. "OK!"

Despite agreeing, she still ordered a mildly spicy dish and asked for his opinions while ordering. "Their business is doing great. It's getting late, yet there are still so many people." "Yeah. You have a keen eye, May!"

Upon hearing that, Shi Nuan was stunned for a moment while sipping her tea because that word sounded familiar. She felt embarrassed to be called by that nickname and tried to change the topic, "Actually, you can just call me by my name!"

"Can I just call you May?" Fu Chengyan asked with a smile. " Because it's different from how others address you."

Shi Nuan was speechless because asking him to call her May was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. Now that she thought about it, no one gave nicknames based on one's birth month. She was glad that he didn't call her April, for that was the pen name of a well-known author, and thankful for not being born in March, as it was named after Roman's god of war.

While thinking about that, Shi Nuan chuckled. Fu Chengyan frowned while holding his teacup, "What's so funny?"

Shi Nuan froze for a moment and bit her lips while thinking how to explain it, but just shook her head, "It's nothing." Because it was rather odd to tell him she was glad for not being born in March.

Fu Chengyan smiled and poured Shi Nuan another cup of tea, "Since your grandfather had given you the shares, just take it. You should keep an eye on what Fu Xicheng and Fu Yuqing are up to!" Shi Nuan nodded sternly. "I know my grandpa has his own reasons, but I just thought things weren't that complicated."

"Your grandfather was the founder of Huancheng. Therefore, this company is undeniably very important to him. Shi Yu was merely his adopted child. Meanwhile, your father only has two daughters, so Huancheng belongs to you and your sister. Shi Wei may have 15% of the shares, but she knew nothing about managing business and is in the entertainment industry. If she marries Fu Xicheng, what do you think will happen to her shares?"

Shi Nuan smiled bitterly, "I understand. Back then, Fu Xicheng courted Shi Wei behind my back because of this. I knew it all these times, and I believe my father isn't a fool, so—"

"Surely he isn't. He even wanted to make use of you in order to gain something from the Yun family." Fu Chengyan said, and Shi Nuan's face turned somewhat ashen upon hearing that. He frowned and responded quickly, "Sorry, I—”

"It's fine. What you're saying was true, anyway." Shi Nuan said with a bitter smile; her look didn't appear pleasant. "Honestly, Huancheng isn't as great as it used to be. My father-I didn't expect him to do such a thing. I thought only my mother was biased because my sister had always been more likable."

"Your grandfather is technically retired, so your father basically is the decision-maker in Huancheng now. It was no news that he coveted the shares, and perhaps that's why everyone was against the transferring of the shares to you.

"You know that you are wise enough to make the right choice. If you were to receive those shares, you will definitely not hand them over."

"That's right, but I'm not the smart one. You are." Shi Nuan said with a bitter smile. She was surprised that an outsider like Fu Chengyan knew so much about the Shi family's interpersonal relationships. "There is another way if you don't want to own these shares!"

"What?" Shi Nuan looked up. "Give them to Shi Yu!"

Shi Nuan was taken aback. "You expect me to get my uncle back for this matter? That's not possible because my uncle left the Shi family for this reason. My grandpa adopted him, and my father was wary of him for many years. My uncle never cared about any of this."

Shi Nuan felt that she could relate to Shi Yu as fellow sufferers. However, she couldn't get away from this situation as he did.

"Is that so?" Fu Chengyan raised his lips slightly, but his look remained cold. He lowered his gaze and tapped on the table. The hotpot was served, and he said, "Let's eat!"